Ghosts of Time
by KodiakWolfe13
Summary: Batman receives the pleasure of watching a child grow as said child goes to sessions at Arkham. He also receives the pleasure of figuring out the mysterious condition that was the reason behind Danny's sessions at Arkham in the first place. (One-Shot. It's done. It's finished. There's not gonna be any new chapters, and your demands only make me not wanna not update it even more.)


**Disclaimer: If I owned any of these people, do you think I'd be writing fanfiction? No I would not. I'd be bathing in money.**

* * *

 _8 Years Old…_

* * *

Batman watched emotionlessly as Scarecrow was practically dragged down the hall, towards the direction of his assigned cell. The ex-professor was shouting cruses and swears as he was dragged down the hall by two larger patrol officers. Beside the Dark Knight, Dr. Sarah Cassidy watched the scene take place with a dry expression, shaking her head with a sigh falling from her lips in exasperation. As she fixed her glasses on her face and began checking things off on her clipboard, the red-haired woman said "Thank you for catching and stopping another one of his plans, Batman."

The Dark Knight nodded his acknowledgement. "Just watch him a little closer this time, Doctor. He's becoming craftier every time he escapes."

Dr. Cassidy looked up from her clipboard again. The look on her face was tired and drained. It was getting exhausting with all the maniacs she had to deal with on a regular basis. "All of them get craftier the more they break out. Watching all of the inmates is a hassle, as I'm sure you know."

Batman nodded again, showing that he did understand how stressful and tiring keeping good surveillance on a bunch of nuts was. The pressure of knowing they were in your hands was a lot to bear. It was why Arkham went through so many staff members in a month. Most people just couldn't take that kind of strain. It took people like Dr. Cassidy to keep operations running.

As the Caped Crusader was about to give a brief goodbye, he was a little shocked to feel something ruffle his cape and latch onto his padded leg. He moved the cape aside, looking down at the unknown object holding onto him. As his eyes met the intruder, his eyes widened a smidgen behind the lenses in his mask. Dr. Cassidy looked down when he moved in an unfamiliar way as well and gasped before saying "Danny!"

A small, ebony-haired child beamed up at the two adults. His blue eyes sparkled with glee while his tiny hands held onto the cloth of the Dark Knight's suit, making tiny fists around the fabric. Height-wise, he barely made it to Batman's hip. The small child wore a blue t-shirt, tan shorts, and white sneakers with black laces. Overall, he was just a normal child that you'd pass on the street as he walked along with his parents.

So what the heck was he doing in frikkin Arkham Asylum?

"Hi Mrs. Cassidy!" The ebony-haired child sang happily, still holding onto Batman's suit in his tiny grasp. "Hi Batman!"

Batman's expression fell into a glare that became instantly focused on Dr. Cassidy. The doctor was gesturing for the boy, Danny, to come to her side but the small child was staring up at the Dark Knight intently. The red-head eventually caught a small glance at Batman's irritated expression and instantly knew the train of thought he was currently riding along in.

"Explain. Now." The Dark Knight ordered, ignoring the slight tug at his leg as the small boy laughed a little, even though there was nothing funny going on.

Dr. Cassidy held up her hands. "Trust me; he's not here for anything bad."

"I would hope so. How old are you?" Batman quickly asked the child, looking down as he continued to keep his cape aside from the younger's head so they could see him.

Danny smiled brighter, showing off his baby teeth and a hole where another had fallen out. A small white stub stuck out from the gum as a new tooth began coming in. Eagerly, he announced "I'm eight!"

He was eight? Dang, the kid was small. Most boys were a couple of inches taller than he was.

Looking back up from the young child, Batman fixed his gaze on the female doctor again. "Why's an eight-year-old child here? As far as I was aware, this is still an asylum for the criminally insane, not a play-place."

Dr. Cassidy released a small huff. "Calm down. Danny is here for, technically speaking, treatment once we identify his illness. We're narrowing down results the more sessions we have. Dr. Young and I are in charge of his case and we see Danny during off-hours in an unoccupied part of the building. He is perfectly safe when he comes here."

"Arkham is safe for _no one,_ let alone an eight-year-old. Send him to a child psychologist." Batman stated, silently noticing how the child in question was watching the adults' argument like a tennis match. His blue eyes sparkled curiously as he watched the small battle, his hands going lax around the older's suit.

Dr. Cassidy looked like she wanted to retort with something but kept her mouth shut. Looking down at Danny, she received his attention and gestured for him to come to her. "Danny, come here. Are you all done talking to Mr. Young?"

The small child nodded as he walked from the Dark Knight's side, quickly stepping over to stand beside the red-haired woman. "Yeah. We finished a little while ago and Mr. Young said something about being done early. He told me to stay in his office while he went to the workroom to copy something but I got bored and went to find you."

Dr. Cassidy sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "You can't do that, Danny. We've told you this before. This place can be dangerous at the right times. We don't want you to get hurt, ok?"

Danny gained a small, guilty look before nodding his consent. "Alright, Mrs. Cassidy."

The red-head nodded and smiled at him, ignoring how Batman crossed his arms in a way that was meant to get her attention. Though her feigned ignorance irritated the dark-clad man further, she continued smiling at the younger and said "Good. Ready to go to the lobby and meet your parents?"

Danny nodded and Dr. Cassidy began leading the small boy through the halls. The Dark Knight didn't follow them and stayed in his spot, watching them. Danny looked over his shoulder, waved, and said "Bye Batman!"

In response, the Dark Knight gave one, small wave in his own tiny goodbye. Danny beamed before turning and walking joyfully beside the taller red-head.

Dr. Cassidy looked down at the small child and couldn't resist asking "Danny, why did you walk up to Batman like that?"

Danny shrugged. "Batman's cool and he's a hero. He wouldn't hurt anyone that didn't deserve it."

The doctor noted how much of a _wonderful_ concept that was for a child Danny's age… That thought process could almost point to violent tendencies in the future, which was even _better_.

Dr. Cassidy took Danny to the lobby of the large place, chatting idly with the ebony-haired child. He was going off about a story his friend had told him. Danny was just finishing the quick story when they reached the lobby, where his parents were waiting patiently. The adults greeted each other, talked a few things over about the reason Danny was there to begin with, and then said their goodbyes. Dr. Cassidy waved as they left, receiving waves in return as the small family left.

Once her charge was gone with his parents, the red-headed doctor journeyed to Dr. Young's office to inform him Danny had left and to suggest watching the child a little better the next time. Sheepishly, the male doctor said he would before informing his colleague he had other patients to see before clocking out. Dr. Cassidy nodded, gave a 'see you later,' and left the room. She headed to her own office, where she was not surprised to see the Dark Knight waiting for her. His glare was still etched in his face, arms crossed over his chest.

"Why don't you send him to a child psychologist? There are plenty of them around. It'd be better for him than coming here." Batman stated, getting straight to the point. From what she could see of his posture, Dr. Cassidy knew he wasn't leaving without some sort of explanation as to why the eight-year-old was coming to Arkham Asylum.

Walking to her desk and sitting down in the plush chair, Dr. Cassidy sighed. "Actually, Danny's parents have already taken him to a couple of child psychologists. This last one finally told them to try and take him here. None of them have been able to figure out what's up with Danny."

"What _is_ supposedly wrong with him?" Batman asked, choosing to walk forward and stand in front of the desk. His stern glare was tinged with curiosity, though most wouldn't notice the look.

"Danny likes telling stories." Dr. Cassidy stated, holding up a finger to keep the Dark Knight from objecting to her simple statement. "And not the kind you usually hear from kids, like being a vampire or something. He says he sees the ghosts of different people running around. Not only that but the 'ghosts' all belong to people who are _alive_. He can give you a full description of these ghosts if you ask him. They're way too intricate to just be fantasies of a child."

"You still can't identify most psychological problems at that age though. For all we know, he could _just_ be telling stories. These 'ghosts' could simply be people he sees at his school or the park. It's not uncommon." Batman stated seriously. He could remember all the stories he made for fun before his parents died and they became more ridiculous the more he thought about them.

Dr. Cassidy sighed again, rubbing her temple. "Though I agree with you on that point, you haven't heard his stories, Batman. Danny says he sees the ghosts all the time; that he can tell them apart from real people because they're see through. For all I know, it may not be a mental illness. It could be something as simple as a meta-ability but, until I know, I'm going to keep narrowing results until we know what to do with these ghosts of his."

Batman stared at the woman for a little longer before turning on his heel and leaving. Dr. Cassidy sarcastically waved to the man's back before leaning forward on her desk, looking through her notes from earlier in the day.

The subject of the child going to Arkham bothered the Dark Knight as he left the gothic castle filled with insanity. It was irritating not knowing what to do. He still didn't think Danny should be going to a place like Arkham but as also aware that the Arkham doctors saw a lot of crap most others didn't. They were a good choice for help but, at the same time, they weren't.

Sighing, Batman decided to watch the ebony-haired child as he was reviewed by Drs. Cassidy and Young. Hopefully, the two would be able to figure out Danny's story telling soon.

* * *

 _9 Years Old…_

* * *

Batman sighed as he watched the ebony-haired child exit the hallway. Danny immediately caught sight of him, beamed, and waved. The Dark Knight patiently waved back once, watching as the boy came to stand in front of him. The nine-year-old had grown considerably closer to the black-clad hero, chatting with him whenever he got to. Amazing in itself was that he never was awkward with or afraid of Batman. The philosophy he had made up a year before still rang true to him.

The Dark Knight was not thrilled Danny was still seeing Drs. Cassidy and Young at Arkham. The two doctors were trying very hard to figure out the boy's story-telling. His 'visions' of ghosts were still frustrating and becoming more mature the longer Danny kept the delusion up. At eight, the boy had said the ghosts would glitch a lot. Now the glitches were starting to become less frequent, which made the sightings smoother and stories more detailed.

"Hi Batman!" Danny greeted happily, waving up at the older man with his beaming smile. Unlike a year ago, all his teeth were in this time. The white shapes were a little crooked and there were a few baby teeth still in, waiting to fall out at any time.

Batman patiently cracked a smile. "Hi Danny. How was your session with Dr. Cassidy today?"

"It was good." Danny answered. "I wish she and Mr. Young would talk about something other than the ghosts sometimes though. It gets boring after awhile. They're not that interesting. I'd rather talk about the game I'm playing at home."

Oh, so Danny was getting tired of going to Arkham just as much as Batman was tired of him going to Arkham. At least the feeling was mutual with someone.

"What game are you playing?" Batman asked, figuring he might as well indulge the child while he waited for Two-Face's doctor to alert him that he could go interrogate the man. Talking to Danny would ease any impatience or boredom he would have felt previously.

Danny beamed brighter when he was asked the question. "It's called Meeblings! You get to be this little oval that has a superpower and you're supposed to get your oval friends into the exit with your superpower! Your superpower depends on the level and what color you are. Like, yellow means you can pull other ovals towards you while blue sends them away! And pink can reverse gravity and-"

Batman watched Danny as he continued to explain how to play the absurd game "Meeblings". The only thing the Dark Knight could remotely pick up good about the otherwise useless game was that it taught you strategy. Or, at least, to an extent… Some of the levels Danny was describing sounded ridiculous.

The Dark Knight's eyes flickered up when he saw Two-Face's doctor gesturing the all clear to him. After giving the brown-haired man a nod, he moved his gaze back down to Danny as he continued on, spouting more useless knowledge of his new favorite game. Batman waited for a pause between the boy's sentences to interject without being mean to the small child.

"Hey." Batman said, gaining the younger's undivided attention within seconds. "I'd love to hear more about your game but I think your parents are waiting for you in the lobby. Can you tell me more about your game next time we see each other?"

Danny smiled and nodded his head. "Yeah, ok!"

The Caped Crusader gave a half-smirk, half-smile. "You can get to the lobby by yourself, right?"

The ebony-haired child nodded. "Yup! I can get there on my own! See you soon, Batman!"

Danny walked past the much larger, older adult and began the journey to the lobby. The Dark Knight watched from his spot silently, waiting for Danny to disappear around one of the corners. Batman scrunched his eyebrows when the child slowed to a stop in the middle of the hall, tilting his head at something at the end of the hall. Worriedly, Batman called "Danny? Is everything alright?"

Still smiling, Danny looked over his shoulder and nodded. "Yup! Just a ghost! Bye Batman!"

Before the black-clad hero could say anything, Danny was laughing as he sprinted down the halls and towards the lobby. Batman stood there for a little while longer before sighing and walking towards Two-Face's cell. It was time to get his game-face on.

* * *

 _10 Years Old…_

* * *

Batman stood behind Danny's chair, looking over his shoulder as the boy read a book. When he had walked in the lobby, he had seen Danny reading with a bored expression on his face. Teasingly, he had walked up behind him, waiting for the boy to notice his presence. So far, the ten-year-old had yet to notice him at all.

A few more minutes passed before Batman finally asked "What are you reading?"

Danny yelped and jumped in his seat, dropping his book. The novel clattered to the ground, falling closed on its front. The ebony-haired boy gasped for breath while quickly looking over his shoulder to see who had scared him nearly to death. A tinge of irritation sparked in his eyes when he saw the Dark Knight smirking down at him.

"That wasn't funny!" Danny stated, bending down to pick up his book before turning around in his seat to look at Batman.

The Dark Knight just watched in amusement. "Whatever you say."

The ten-year-old glared before opening the book to re-find his page. His Percy Jackson bookmark was sitting silently on the end table beside the boy's chair as he waited to be called back by one of the doctors he saw on a regular basis.

As Danny tried to remember what page he was on, the Dark Knight reached out, grabbed some pages, and flipped to the page Danny was last on. Danny gave him an irritated, mumbled 'thank you' before grabbing his bookmark and setting it firmly in place between the pages. With a _snap_ , the kid closed the book with the marker sticking out of the middle.

"You never answered my question." The Dark Knight pointed out, still smirking as he looked down at the boy.

Danny gave a small huff and showed the cover of the book he was reading. There was a picture of a girl and a dog walking along the cover with a trailer behind them. The Newberry Honor medal was sitting in the corner opposite of the girl and dog. The words _Because of Winn Dixie_ sat across the top.

"Hm." Batman hummed. "How are you liking it so far?"

Danny shrugged, his lips turning into a frown. "Eh. It's ok. It's not my favorite book. I'd rather be reading fantasy but I have to read it for this school quarter. Next quarter's will be better. I think we're going to read _Hatchet._ "

"How do you know that?" Batman asked expectantly, tilting his head at the smaller male.

Danny shrugged again. "The older kids at my school."

The Dark Knight gave the boy an expectant look. Danny huffed again and looked away, fingering the crinkled edges of his school book. "Fine… I saw some ghosts with the book but they've been wrong before. I thought we were going to read _Island of the Blue Dolphins_ this quarter but they were wrong."

Batman nodded at the sufficient answer. Since Danny was getting older, he was starting to understand better why he was going to the resident asylum to speak with the doctors that worked with the inmates. At school, he was beginning to realize the stories of the 'ghosts' were scaring the teachers and the other students. He had stopped talking about the transparent beings and started making excuses for most of the things he found out through them. Danny had even started doing it to Drs. Cassidy and Young, who _wanted_ him to talk about it. Because of Danny's sudden clam-up, it put their observations on what was up with these 'ghosts' on hold, though they had long since stopped looking into mental illnesses and focused on known meta abilities.

It seemed the Dark Knight was the only one who could openly get the boy to admit to anything about the ghosts. Danny's excuse to this was that Batman was dressed up as a giant bat and that made the Dark Knight just as crazy as Danny was. Batman had snorted at the statement.

The two perked when Dr. Cassidy appeared in the doorway, calling Danny's name. Looking up from her clipboard, she jumped a little at seeing Batman but waved. The Dark Knight nodded at her in response, watching as Danny got up and stuffed his book in the backpack under the end table. Slinging the pack over his shoulder, Danny gave a goodbye before following the red-head down the hall.

As he left, Batman gave his own goodbye for the time being before going off down one of the halls, prepared to do the task he had been there to do originally.

* * *

 _11 Years Old…_

* * *

Danny slumped in his seat, ear-buds in his ears as he stared at the chair in front of him. Dr. Young's office was mostly bare of any personal touches. There were a few family photos on his desk and pictures his kids had drawn on the front of his desk but, other than that, it was blank of anything feely-touchy. The ebony-haired preteen was sitting in one of the comfy chairs on the other side of the office from the desk. Dr. Young's chair sat in front of him, empty.

Techno music blared in the boy's ears. He drummed his fingers against the arm of his chair in a steady rhythm with the beat of his tunes. A bored frown was set on Danny's face as he waited for the older doctor to come back to the room and continue their session. The fact that the villainess Poison Ivy was having a meltdown somewhere in the large building didn't strike any fear into the boy. It was almost normal for something like that to happen.

Danny gasped, jumped, and felt his heart skip a beat when someone brushed their hand against his shoulder. The ebony-haired boy's head whipped around and up, looking up at the intruder that had touched him. He calmed immediately when he saw Batman's expressionless face looking down at his startled one.

Smiling small, Danny slipped his ear-buds out of his ears and said "Hey Bats. Long time no see, eh?"

"It's only been a couple of weeks." The Dark Knight stated, shrugging. "No one has escaped Arkham and no one's been in need of treatment. It's been a slow couple of weeks for me."

Danny hummed and gave one of his own shrugs. "Lucky you. School has been hounding us with a ton of homework lately. Yeah standardized testing~!"

Batman snorted, giving a small, teasing hair-ruffle to the preteen. "You better be doing it. I'll be very disappointed if you don't keep your grades up like you usually do."

The ebony-haired boy rolled his eyes at the almost paternal nature of the older. "Yeah, yeah, I'm keeping them up. My mother-hen of a sister makes sure I have my homework done before I go to bed. It's irritating."

The Dark Knight gave the boy a ghost of a smile before looking around the empty, blank room curiously. After taking in every detail and the way Danny was sitting, Batman asked "Where's Dr. Young? You two are usually in the middle of a session right now."

Danny shrugged away, slumping in his seat. After getting smacked lightly on the arm by the adult, he groaned and straightened himself again. "He said something about Poison Ivy pitching a fit on the way out the door. I'm pretty sure he'll be back in… Twenty minutes, I think."

"Where'd you pull that timeframe from?" Batman asked sarcastically, crossing his arms over his chest as he gazed at the boy curiously.

Danny shrugged. "Ghosts."

Batman nodded at the answer and let the entire thing drop. The preteen still didn't enjoy talking about what he saw all the time but he was more willing to speak about it. There were times where he'd lie the entire session and it usually took a good talking-to from Batman to get him to start telling the truth again, though his answers always remained consistently vague and sketchy. It wasn't that he couldn't see the ghosts as good as he could when he was younger and willingly gave colorful descriptions; he just despised talking about it.

The Dark Knight asked Danny about his day at school. The two talked until Dr. Young came back.

Batman noticed he and Danny had been talking for twenty minutes; the timeframe predicted by the preteen when the Dark Knight had asked.

* * *

 _12 Years Old…_

* * *

Danny smiled down at the paper in his hands, reading over the bolded words with interest as he absently walked down the halls of the asylum. His sneakers squeaked against the speckled tile, leaving small scuffs on the white floor. The sterile smell drifting throughout the mental hospital barely registered in Danny's brain. He didn't notice much about his surroundings and kept his gaze focused on the paper in his hands.

That is, until he walked straight into a black-clad body with a yelp.

Stumbling back a couple of steps and almost tripping over his feet, Danny yelped again when someone caught his sleeve and steadied him. The sheet of paper Danny was holding stayed tight in his clutch, too precious to drop. Smiling sheepishly, the preteen looked up at Batman's amused expression and chuckled nervously. "Uh… Hi?"

"Hi." Batman said, still smiling in amusement. "What's so interesting that you didn't see me until you ran into me?"

The preteen bit his smiling lip and looked down at the crinkled sheet in his hands. Shifting in nervousness and excitement, Danny looked back up at the adult and held out the sheet in his hands. "I entered the science fair again this year and well…"

Batman took the sheet from the smaller boy's hands and quickly scanned it over, smoothing out the edges as he did. As he read over the bolded words, his eyes widened a fraction behind his mask. Looking from the paper to the excited child, he gave a tiny, genuine smile to the excited boy. "You made it into the county science fair as one of the finalists?"

Danny nodded quickly and bounced sharply in his spot.

The Dark Knight handed the sheet back to the preteen. "That's great, Danny. What was your project on?"

"How to find your latitude by building an astrolabe." Danny explained simply. The smile on his face was shy but huge as he thought about his project that enabled him to get into the county finals. Awkwardly, the boy rubbed the back of his head while looking up at the older hero.

"I'd like to see it some time." The Dark Knight said, assuring the small preteen.

Danny beamed brighter. "I knew I was going to get into the finals but it's still unbelievable."

Though he already knew what his answer would be, Batman couldn't resist asking "Oh, and how did you already know?"

Danny's smile shrunk some. "Ghosts."

Batman shrugged his understanding before ruffling the boy's hair. "You all done with your session for the day?"

Danny nodded. "Yup. My parents are waiting for me in the lobby."

The Dark Knight gestured for the boy to go along. "Alright then. I'll see you soon, Danny."

The ebony-haired preteen nodded and began walking away. As he was strolling down the hall, the sheet of paper still in his hand, he called over his shoulder "Bye Bats."

* * *

 _13 Years Old…_

* * *

Danny scribbled down another answer for his pre-algebra homework before he picked up his calculator and began mapping out another problem. Sitting bunched up in his seat, he looked crowded to everybody that saw him but he didn't feel that way. Too enveloped in his homework, he wasn't paying attention to any of his discomfort, though it would have been preferred to the torture he was going through.

Erasing a scribble that was supposed to be a nine, Danny frowned at his homework as he wiped away the eraser shavings. The pink snippets fell to the floor, gathering around their other fallen friends in a pile on the tiled ground. The teenager didn't notice the ever-growing pile beside his chair.

The dark-haired boy heard someone walk up beside him, standing just behind him as he worked. Their boots clacked against the floor as they walked, though many times before the figure had proven he could be silent if he wanted to be. As the figure stopped and placed his gloved hands on his shoulders, Danny merely hummed and asked "Yeah?"

"Are you having fun over here?"

"Not at all." Danny answered, still staring intently at one of the problems he had been having trouble with. He was almost ready to finally get out his study guide from his backpack, even though it meant getting up from his spot; something he did not want to do and had vowed he wouldn't do unless absolutely necessary.

Batman snorted behind him, squeezing his shoulders lightly. "That's wonderful to hear. What are you working on?"

"Don't ask questions you already know the answer to." Danny responded, letting his gaze drift over to where his backpack was just out of his reach. He thought about getting it but found he really didn't want to get up and grab it. His way of sitting was actually pretty comfortable, if a little tight.

The Dark Knight snorted again at Danny's answer. Clamping the boy's shoulder, he said "Alright, you keep working while you wait for Cassidy or Young. I have to go see one of the inmates."

Danny saluted. "Ok. You have fun."

Batman's hands left his shoulder and the teenager could hear the older's boots clacking against the tile as he slipped through one of the doorways. As he was walking away, Danny started suddenly and called "Batman, wait a minute! I forgot to tell you something!"

The Dark Knight immediately stopped at the boy's call and turned around, giving the boy an expectant look.

The black-haired boy said "Tomorrow, around three in the morning, some of the inmates are going to try to break out with the Riddler as the head. They've got some guards under their thumb and plan to take one of the doctors as hostage."

Batman scrunched his eyebrows together and opened his mouth to ask how the boy knew this but Danny mumbled "But then again, it was flurrying… And Harlequin busted out of Arkham two weeks ago…"

Dr. Cassidy appeared in a different entryway, calling "Danny, I'm ready for you."

"Never mind, Bats! Ignore everything I just said!" The teen called before quickly getting up, throwing his backpack over his shoulder, and hurrying after Dr. Cassidy with his pre-algebra books pressed tightly to his chest. Batman had no time to ask about the boy's warning before he was gone and stood there dumbfounded for a few moments.

Danny had described one of the breakouts from the year before that had been kept carefully under wraps. How did he know about it?

* * *

 _14 Years Old…_

* * *

Danny waited outside of Dr. Young's office where he could hear his parents, Young, and Cassidy not-so-nicely discussing him and his 'condition'. There was a bored expression on his face as he waited for someone to come outside and talk to him about what was going on inside. The teenager thought it was kind of ridiculous that he was the main topic of the argument and he wasn't allowed in it.

His blue eyes drifted up when a familiar dark-clad figure stopped beside him, looking between the boy and the door where loud voices were coming from. The adults weren't yelling but they sure were making one heck of a racket.

"Did I miss something?" Batman asked.

Danny shrugged and leaned back in his seat, looking up at the taller figure. Even though he was much older than the first time he had met the hero, he was still considered small for his age. He was dwarfed against the larger hero.

"Not really." Danny answered, shrugging. He gestured to the office door. "They fight like this every couple of months. They keep getting more frequent though. My parents think Mr. Young and Mrs. Cassidy should know what's up with my brain by now but the other two are trying to tell them I can be very difficult since I'm uncomfortable talking about the ghost thing."

Batman frowned. "It _has_ been seven years…"

Danny just shrugged as a response, looking around the bland hallway with no visible interest in the all-too familiar sight. "Yeah, well, I'm confusing. It's just the way I like to roll. It ticks everyone off."

The Dark Knight flicked Danny's head, earning a yelp. "If you just opened up more, you wouldn't be in this position. You probably would have been out of here a long time ago. I know it makes you uncomfortable because it makes _others_ uncomfortable but don't you want to stop coming to these sessions? If only a little?"

Danny looked at Batman for a little while before nodding his agreement. The Dark Knight nodded back in understanding. They stayed quiet for a little while, both contemplating things. Batman finally said "Over the years, I've come up with theories as to what's going on in your brain but I can't really back any of them up because I know only a little bit of your condition. Mind telling me a little more?"

The dark-haired boy shrugged his shoulders. "Well, there's not much to say. I see them almost all the time. Most of them are people I've never seen. They all seem to vary between eras of time and they can confuse the frikkin crap out of me. Sometimes I seem to 'see the future' because I watch some of my classmates reenact what their ghosts did and other times I see stuff they've already done. On streets, I watch all sorts of crap happen. It's not even interesting anymore."

Batman stayed quiet, processing this information and comparing it to the mysterious things the boy had said to him over the years. Someone the Dark Knight had not seen in a very long time popped into his head as the solution to Danny's problem.

"I know someone that might be able to help you." Batman informed, earning Danny's undivided attention. "Would you be interested in seeing him if I get permission from your parents?"

The dark-haired boy nodded enthusiastically, suddenly looking very excited. Batman nodded his understanding, yet again, before he walked into the office, uninvited.

Danny waited an eternity out in the hallway to see what the answer would be. He wanted so bad to control or, in the very least, find out what his condition was so he didn't have to come to Arkham anymore. Impatiently, the boy bounced in his seat, trying to hear what was going inside the office behind him but the adults had suddenly gotten quiet.

Batman eventually came out of the office again with the other adults in tow. The Dark Knight gestured for Danny to follow him and the boy cheered before hugging his reluctant parents, saying goodbye to the doctors, and practically skipping beside Danny as they journeyed down the hall.

When they got outside and Batman told Danny to get in his car, the teenager almost fainted looking at the glorious vehicle. Batman only rolled his eyes, smacked the boy upside the head, and demanded he get in the car. Whining, Danny did as he was told and got in the passenger seat, asking if he would be able to drive the Batmobile one day. His answer was a blatant 'no.'

The ride to Batman's acquaintance's place was quiet but Danny didn't mind. He was too busy being fascinated with the high-tech vehicle to care. Beside him, Batman was silently laughing at the boy in his head.

Danny didn't realize the time that passed until the Dark Knight parked the car. As they got out, the dark-haired teen realized they were in a part of Gotham he had never been to. After asking Batman where they were, he found they were just outside the Narrows. Danny frowned but the hero told him not to worry before leading the teenager into a small shop with a sign that read 'The Clock Shop.'

Upon entering the small complex, Danny's ears were immediately met with the sound of ticking clocks of all types. All around the small store, various antique clocks crowded the complex. Some sat on tables while others were too big and created little aisles. The shop had dim lighting and gave off an eerie air.

Batman quietly led him through the store while Danny tried to stay close behind. A few times, he stopped to stare at some of the grandfather clocks but was always tugged forward by the Dark Knight, who always said the boy would have enough time to look at them later.

In the back of the shop, there was an elderly man sitting at a desk with a register on it. Laid across the desk were various gears and springs from the Welch Patti shelf clock in the older man's hands as he stuck a screwdriver into its insides, twisting something around slowly and carefully.

Danny immediately noticed how the man's eyes were a mix between milky and red with a faint lightning strike scar over his left eye. He wore purple robes with a hood over his head. An old pocket watch hung from his chest pocket, clicking quietly. A staff with a small clock in the center of the top sat behind him; the small pendulum inside swinging back and forth steadily.

The two approached the desk. As they did, the elderly man hummed before saying "Hello Batman. It's been a long time. Who have you brought along with you to this dreary place today?"

Stopping in front of the desk, Batman led Danny up beside him, replying "Clockwork, this is Danny. For a few years now, he's been seeing doctors at Arkham for seeing ghosts. I've come to believe he sees time like you do."

Danny looked up at Batman sharply, though he knew the idea wasn't so farfetched. He'd thought of it multiple times in the past with all the weird occurrences before talking himself out of it. There was no way he saw the past or future like that.

But now... He was sort of being forced to accept the fact he did see time in a way others didn't.

The man, Clockwork, set down the screwdriver and moved the Welch Patti clock off the side, sitting dead and quiet. The other clicks and chimes of the other clocks rang in the three's ears though. No need for another one to deafen them even more.

Clockwork turned his milky red eyes towards Danny, smiling gently. "So boy... This man says you see ghosts. What do you think you see?"

Danny took a deep breath and looked around the room. Even now, he could see women with long dresses and petticoats walking around the store with their husbands in nice suits. A few children followed behind obediently, looking but not touching. All were transparent and none of them could see him, Batman, or Clockwork.

Looking back at the old man, Danny answered "I do see ghosts but they're ghosts of time."

Clockwork's eyes sparkled in the low light. "Well Daniel... What would you think if I saw them too?"

* * *

 **Then Clockwork teaches Danny to control his powers and fun times. Yeah.**

 **Things to know about this AU: There are no real ghosts from the DP universe. Everyone is human. Danny's a meta. I have no plans to continue this, though that may change in the future. We'll see. ...that about covers it.**

 **Holas, my repeat offenders and newbies! Hope you enjoyed! I don't care either way if you do! I was just having fun with this. Not a big surprise. I also wanted to give you guys something before I go to New England for two weeks. I hope to get out a three-shot out before then but we'll see.**

 **For those who are waiting for the end of July for "Fancy Meeting You Here" updates... I've got some bad news. It looks like I'm going to have to move the date to August. I found out yesterday I'm moving for the 7th time in 3 years. Am I thrilled? Not really. My parents say we'll be out of the house we're living in now by the end of next month but I'm unsure of the exact dates of when the move will happen. Sorry but I don't make a dent on my parent's decisions.**


End file.
